Apparatus for recording audio and video signals

Abstract

It is an object of the present invention to provide a data recording apparatus which is designed to allow compatability to other recording and reproducing apparatus and is capable of readily performing the additional recording or rewriting of data. Channels ch1 and ch2 are used as a channel for video data; and channels ch3 and ch4 as a channel for audio data. During the recording of video data, the channels ch3 and ch4 are made to be null. On the other hand, during the recording of audio data, the channels ch1 and ch2 are made to be null. Accordingly, the rewriting of the recorded video data or audio data as required can be easily performed. Besides, where recording is performed only on either the channels for video data or the channels for audio data, recording areas are secured for the other channels so that after-recording (additional recording) is easily performed.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A data recording apparatus for performing four-channel recording for the simultaneous recording of four kinds of data on a recording medium, comprising: audio data recording means for recording audio signal data on two of four channels preset as audio channels;   video data recording means for recording video signal data on the other two channels preset as video channels; and   control means for, at the time that recording is performed by the audio data recording means, preventing recording of signal data by the video data recording means, and at the time that recording is performed by the video data recording means, preventing recording of signal data by the audio recording means.   
     
     
       2. A data recording apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein at the time that signal data recording is performed on two channels by either one of the audio data recording means and video data recording means, non-signal data are recorded on the other two channels by the other recording means. 
     
     
       3. An apparatus comprising: a recording medium;   means for simultaneously recording different types of signals on multiple channels of the recording medium, a first set of the channels for recording audio signals and a second set for recording video signals, including: means for intermittently interleaving video frames of video signal data on the first set of channels and audio frames of audio signal data on the second set of channels, and   means for preventing recording of audio signal data while video signal data are being recorded, thereby generating associated available audio recording regions and for preventing recording of video signal data while audio signal data are being recorded thereby generating associated video recording regions.     
     
     
       4. An apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising: means for selectively recording information in either of the available recording regions.   
     
     
       5. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the video frames and audio frames are alternately interleaved. 
     
     
       6. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the multiple channels include four channels with both sets of channels including two channels. 
     
     
       7. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein audio signal data are selectively recorded in the available audio recording regions after recording the video signal data. 
     
     
       8. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the video signal data are selectively recorded in the available video recording regions after recording the audio signal data. 
     
     
       9. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein during simultaneous recording of audio and video signal data, non-signal data are stored in the available recording regions. 
     
     
       10. A method of simultaneously recording audio and video signals on a four channel recording medium, each recording frame having two video channels and two audio channels, comprising: (a) during first intermittent frames, recording audio data on the two audio channels;   (b) preventing recording of video data on the two video channels corresponding to the first intermittent frames;   (c) during second intermittent frames different than the first intermittent frames, recording video data on the two video channels; and   (d) preventing recording of audio data on the two audio channels corresponding to the second intermittent frames.   
     
     
       11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: after step (d), selectively recording audio data on the two audio channels during one or more second intermittent frames.   
     
     
       12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: after step (d), selectively recording video data on the two video channels during one or more first intermittent frames.   
     
     
       13. The method according to claim 10, wherein the first and second intermittent frames are alternately interleaved. 
     
     
       14. The method according to claim 10, wherein non-signal data are recorded in steps (b) and (d).